Gigaset GS280 Smartphone Review

Optimized for streaming.
German manufacturer Gigaset aims primarily at video streamers with its latest GS280 smartphone and equips it with a large battery as well as a bright high-resolution display. In addition, it is also supposed to house a decent camera and offer adequate system performance. Find out in our test whether or not Gigaset succeeded with its ambitious goals.

Our reviews of previous Gigaset smartphones, such as the GS100, GS180,GS185, GS270, and 270 Plus have shown us time and again that the German manufacturer is capable of making solid entry-level and mid-range devices with a somewhat conservative design language. If you are looking for a sleek case with a waterdrop notch or a punch-hole camera you need to look elsewhere, and the Gigaset GS280 fits that design language perfectly. It is aimed primarily at users looking for a robust daily driver that does not follow every single trend blindly.

Accordingly, the GS280 is equipped with a Snapdragon 430 (MSM8937), 3 GB of RAM, an Adreno 505, and 32 GB of eMMC storage. With its 5.7-inch display it is one of the smaller smartphones currently available, and it will cost you roughly $250.

The case’s design language follows in its predecessors’ footsteps. The robust case consists of a metal frame and a plastic rear cover containing the fingerprint reader, the camera, and the LED flash. All physical buttons are located at the right-hand side and sit very firmly in their respective openings. The dual SIM/microSD tray on the left-hand side is just as snug. The display bezels are visible on all four sides with thick black stripes above and below the display. Available colors include “Coffee Brown” and “Golden Topaz”.

In terms of weight the GS280 was neither here nor there, and its footprint was nothing to write home about either. However, at 9.2 mm it was one of the thickest contenders in our test group. Overall, its size was not unlike other smartphones with comparably large batteries, such as for example the Motorola Moto G7 Power.

Connectivity

The GS280 is a mid-range Android smartphone, and its hardware fits that bill perfectly. A Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 paired with 3 GB of RAM ensure a smooth system performance. Graphics are handled by an Adreno 505 and 32 GB of eMMC flash storage should be plentiful enough for apps and personal data. If not, storage can be expanded with microSD cards of up to 256 GB without sacrificing the device’s dual SIM capabilities given that the phone can take two nano SIMs and one microSD card simultaneously. If supported by your wireless provider the phone also supports VoLTE and VoWiFi.

At the bottom we find a USB-C port for charging and data transfer. Unfortunately, it is only connected to a USB 2.0 controller but offers USB-OTG capabilities, such as charging external devices, in return. A 3.5-mm headphone jack for connecting external speakers or headsets is available as well.

Software

After first boot we were greeted by a pure Android Oreo 8.1 with security patches as of November 5, 2018. An update with camera improvements as well as various bug fixes and security patches as of February 2019 was available at the time of writing. After updating we were unable to launch the Play Store and the Explore Gigaset app but were unable to reproduce this issue. It was most likely an isolated case and not a general problem.

Uninstalling unnecessary third-party applications was not necessary since the only two non-standard apps installed on the GS280 are the Gigaset apps Help and Explore Gigaset. Given that the device lacks support for DRM Widevine L1, streaming FHD content in apps such as Netflix or Prime Video is not supported.

In return, multi-user capabilities are enabled by default and the device can be set up to be used by more than just one person.

Communication and GPS

The GS280 supports cellular connections in 2G, 3G, and 4G/LTE networks. The LTE Cat. 4 modem allows for data transfer speeds of up to 150/50 Mb/s (downstream/upstream). Supported near field communication protocols include Bluetooth 4.2 and 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi but there is no NFC.

When connected to our Linksys EA8500 reference router the Gigaset smartphone managed speeds of up to 153 Mb/s receiving and 247 Mb/s transmitting data. It was thus comparable to other mid-range devices and performed adequately for its price range.

We take every device on a quick bike tour around the block to compare it to a professional Garmin Edge 500 satnav. We noticed some discrepancies on long straights but no issues in bends or with sudden changes of direction. Overall, the GS280 was fairly accurate and is thus more than capable of handling even more complex navigation requirements.

GNSS - Gigaset GS280

GNSS - Gigaset GS280

GNSS - Gigaset GS280

GNSS - Garmin Edge 500

GNSS - Garmin Edge 500

GNSS - Garmin Edge 500

Telephony and Call Quality

The GS280 uses Google’s default telephony app, which offers direct access to a dial pad, a recents list, and contacts. Call quality was very clear and cellular reception was very decent overall. Both conversational partners had no issues understanding each other and the device’s ambient noise filters worked very reliably and well. The GS280 remained usable even in noisy environments thanks to its high maximum volume. The included headset was even better and more effective at filtering out ambient noise, and it offered decent overall voice quality.

Cameras

Front-facing camera sample photo

At the rear, we find a single 16 MP camera with an f/2.0 aperture and an LED flash while the front-facing camera is equipped with a 13 MP sensor. Portrait photos taken in decent light turned out okay, however the camera had trouble with the dynamic range, which made objects in front of dark backgrounds or dark objects hard to distinguish. In addition, we found the transitions between objects in the captured image to be somewhat blurry. The camera app includes three quality settings - low, standard, and high - as well as an ISO setting and various presets. A beauty mode allows for additional modifications by applying soft-focus filters and adjusting white balance.

In decent light, the main camera produced acceptable photos. As can be seen in our panorama photo objects were very clear and well-defined even though their respective edges were slightly blurry when zoomed in. Our close-up photo is full of details that also turned noticeably blurry on closer inspection. The results are highly dependent on how well the lighting is. Back light, for example, resulted in a pale top portion and a very dark representation of shady and darker areas. Poor lighting conditions rendered the camera all but unusable. Our test photo turned out mostly black and the object in question was almost impossible to make out. The camera app is fairly limited and only offers a few image improvement capabilities. In addition to color filters and presets you can adjust image quality in three undefined and thus indeterminate steps: ISO level, brightness/exposure, and white balance.

Video quality was overall similar to photo quality. The optional video stabilizer worked very well and was able to eliminate minor camera shake. Supported resolutions include HD 1080p, HD 720p, SD 480p, VGA, CIF, and QVGA. Video length can be set to unlimited, 30 seconds, 10 minutes, or 30 minutes, and you can also adjust white balance and color mode. A high frame-rate mode is not available.

Image Comparison

Choose a scene and navigate within the first image. One click changes the position on touchscreens. One click on the zoomed-in image opens the original in a new window. The first image shows the scaled photograph of the test device.

We use the ColorChecker Passport in order to determine color accuracy. Overall, the GS280 captured colors too bright. Dark grays, in return, were darker than expected.

The photo of our test chart taken under normalized conditions turned out mediocre at best. Details and fine structures were slightly blurry, colors were too bright, and both bottom edges suffered from a very noticeable paleness.

Accessories and Warranty

Included in the box are a USB power supply with matching USB-C cable and a stereo headset. Optional accessories include protective cases, spare power supplies, and cables.

By default, GS280 devices sold in Europe ship with 24 months of warranty and a no-questions-asked policy on all glass and water damage within the first three months.

Input Devices and Handling

The device ships with Google’s Gboard keyboard app enabled, which worked great for typing longer sentences. The touchscreen was reliable and quick to react. Unfortunately, its surface was not as smooth as it could be, which rendered drag & drop operations rather arduous. In addition, there was a noticeable lag between rotating the device and watching the screen content rotate accordingly.

Unlocking the GS280 can be achieved via the integrated fingerprint sensor at the back of the device. It was reliable most of the time and only occasionally required a second attempt to successfully unlock the phone.

Display

Subpixel array

The GS280 is equipped with a 5.7-inch IPS display with a native resolution of 2160x1080 and a maximum brightness of 472 nits at the center. With enabled ambient light sensor we were able to determine a maximum of 475 nits and 466 nits in the APL50 test. While brightness is average for its class brightness distribution was subpar at just 87%.

We were able to detect PWM flickering at a high frequency of 2,232 Hz at brightness levels of 2% and below. This frequency is high enough to not cause any issues even in sensitive users.

Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)

ℹ

To dim the screen, some notebooks will simply cycle the backlight on and off in rapid succession - a method called Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) . This cycling frequency should ideally be undetectable to the human eye. If said frequency is too low, users with sensitive eyes may experience strain or headaches or even notice the flickering altogether.

Screen flickering / PWM detected

2232 Hz

≤ 2 % brightness setting

The display backlight flickers at 2232 Hz (Likely utilizing PWM) Flickering detected at a brightness setting of 2 % and below. There should be no flickering or PWM above this brightness setting.

The frequency of 2232 Hz is quite high, so most users sensitive to PWM should not notice any flickering.

In comparison: 51 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 9367 (minimum: 43 - maximum: 142900) Hz was measured.

According to our tests, the GS280 can boast a high contrast ratio of 1,686:1 and an exceptional black level for its class of just 0.28 nits. This means that colors are well-defined and the bloom around blacks is minimal at best.

Using CalMAN we were able to detect slightly elevated levels of blue. Unfortunately, we found no way of adjusting the color temperature in the settings.

CalMAN - color accuracy

CalMAN - color-space coverage

CalMAN - grayscale

CalMAN - saturation

Display Response Times

ℹ

Display response times show how fast the screen is able to change from one color to the next. Slow response times can lead to afterimages and can cause moving objects to appear blurry (ghosting). Gamers of fast-paced 3D titles should pay special attention to fast response times.

↔ Response Time Black to White

28.8 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined

↗ 10.8 ms rise

↘ 18 ms fall

The screen shows relatively slow response rates in our tests and may be too slow for gamers.In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.8 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 67 % of all devices are better.This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (25 ms).

↔ Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey

61.6 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined

↗ 30.8 ms rise

↘ 30.8 ms fall

The screen shows slow response rates in our tests and will be unsatisfactory for gamers.In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.9 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 96 % of all devices are better.This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (39.8 ms).

Outdoor usability was very decent thanks to its bright display, and we had no trouble reading the screen even in bright sunlight. Reflections can cause issues depending on viewing angle but were fortunately not a big issue when facing the screen head-on.

Outdoors

Outdoors

As expected of an IPS panel, viewing angles were very wide. The screen remained readable from all angles and positions without distorting colors or on-screen objects. Reflections permitting, the device can be used even at acute angles.

Viewing angles

Viewing angles

Performance

Equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 430, an Adreno 505, 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB of eMMC flash storage the Gigaset GS280 appears to be a typical lower mid-range Android smartphone. The hardware should be more than powerful enough for most day-to-day applications, such as WhatsApp, Facebook, or browsing the web. Even occasional gaming is not impossible albeit GPU performance is going to be somewhat limited.

Overall, the GS280’s performance was below average in our benchmarks. While the SoC performed as expected, other similarly priced smartphones delivered a much higher performance. Nevertheless, the Gigaset smartphone was more than fast enough for streaming videos and everyday tasks and challenges.

In our browser benchmarks the GS280 landed in second to last place. The only device even slower was its own predecessor, the GS270. Subjectively it remained decently fast in everyday use when browsing the web. Websites were quick to render and media content loaded swiftly.

Despite the internal storage’s mediocre performance on paper it was still fast enough to not cause any delays when launching applications or opening files and photos, which loaded quickly and without any noticeable lag. The 32 GB of internal eMMC flash storage can be expanded with microSD cards of up to 256 GB. When tested with our Toshiba Exceria Pro M501 reference card the internal card reader performed slightly above average.

MicroSD cards cannot be formatted as internal storage and can thus not be used to offload applications. ExFAT, a file system used for storing large files, is also not supported.

Gaming

The GS280 is equipped with an Adreno 505, a typical mid-range GPU that is mostly limited to less-demanding applications and games. Both Arena of Valor and Temple Run 2 were rendered smoothly on highest settings. More-demanding games will require reduced details in order to remain playable and smooth.

The touchscreen worked very well despite the slightly elevated fingertip resistance that rendered frequent swipe gestures more strenuous than necessary. The gyroscope was very quick to react and delivered its sensor data almost instantaneously and without any noticeable lag.

Arena of Valor

Temple Run 2

Emissions

Temperature

During our tests the Gigaset GS280’s surface temperatures were measured at 35.7 °C when idle and 38.7 °C under load. The smartphone felt slightly warm to the touch but never too hot to be held in the hand. Sustained load caused no issues whatsoever, and we found no evidence of excessive internal temperatures.

(±) The average temperature for the upper side under maximal load is 37.2 °C / 99 F, compared to the average of 33.1 °C / 92 F for the devices in the class Smartphone.(+) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 38.7 °C / 102 F, compared to the average of 35.5 °C / 96 F, ranging from 22.4 to 51.7 °C for the class Smartphone.(+) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 37.5 °C / 100 F, compared to the average of 34.1 °C / 93 F(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 30.3 °C / 87 F, compared to the device average of 33.1 °C / 92 F.

Heat map top

Heat map bottom

Speakers

Speaker characteristics

The GS280’s speaker was comparatively loud and balanced. Despite its lack of bass it performed well enough for occasional media consumption. We suggest headphones or external speakers for an improved audio experience, which can be connected using the device’s 3.5-mm headphone jack. It offered a snug fit and had no negative impact on sound quality.

Frequency diagram (checkboxes can be checked and unchecked to compare devices)

Gigaset GS280 audio analysis

(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (84.5 dB)Bass 100 - 315 Hz(-) | nearly no bass - on average 31% lower than median(±) | linearity of bass is average (8.2% delta to prev. frequency)Mids 400 - 2000 Hz(+) | balanced mids - only 4.9% away from median(+) | mids are linear (6.9% delta to prev. frequency)Highs 2 - 16 kHz(±) | higher highs - on average 6.2% higher than median(±) | linearity of highs is average (7.4% delta to prev. frequency)Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (24.7% difference to median)Compared to same class» 52% of all tested devices in this class were better, 11% similar, 38% worse» The best had a delta of 13%, average was 25%, worst was 44%Compared to all devices tested» 70% of all tested devices were better, 6% similar, 23% worse» The best had a delta of 3%, average was 21%, worst was 53%

Motorola Moto G7 Power audio analysis

(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (83.1 dB)Bass 100 - 315 Hz(-) | nearly no bass - on average 27.4% lower than median(±) | linearity of bass is average (12.3% delta to prev. frequency)Mids 400 - 2000 Hz(+) | balanced mids - only 4.5% away from median(+) | mids are linear (4.4% delta to prev. frequency)Highs 2 - 16 kHz(+) | balanced highs - only 3.7% away from median(+) | highs are linear (5.1% delta to prev. frequency)Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (20.2% difference to median)Compared to same class» 15% of all tested devices in this class were better, 8% similar, 77% worse» The best had a delta of 13%, average was 25%, worst was 44%Compared to all devices tested» 43% of all tested devices were better, 9% similar, 49% worse» The best had a delta of 3%, average was 21%, worst was 53%

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Battery Life

Power Consumption

According to our measurements the GS280 had a minimum power consumption of 1.88 W when idle and a maximum of 7.33 W under load. These are both significantly higher than on competing smartphones, and consequently the GS280 landed in last place in this category.

The included power supply is rated at 18 W and thus amply dimensioned to supply the GS280 with more energy than required.

Battery Life

The GS280 lasted for roughly 12 hours in our real-world Wi-Fi test, and was thus comparable to the GS270. Other smartphones are capable of squeezing longer runtimes out of their identically sized 5,000 mAh batteries, for example the Samsung Galaxy M20 (15:27 hours) or the Motorola Moto G7 with more than 35 hours.

The phone itself supports Qualcomm’s QuickCharge 3.0; however, the included charger does not. Accordingly, it took around 4.5 hours to charge the GS280’s battery from near empty to full.

Pros

Cons

-battery life could be even longer

-no DRM Widevine L1

-phone supports QC3, charger does not

Verdict

In review: Gigaset GS280. Review unit courtesy of Gigaset Germany.

All things considered, the Gigaset GS280 turned out to be a solid and decent lower mid-range smartphone. Users can expect a smooth system performance, a long battery life, and a decent display to boot. The camera was good enough for occasional snaps, and the case was robust enough to take a minor beating every now and then.

The Gigaset GS280 is a solid and decent lower mid-range smartphone. However, its “streaming smartphone” branding is unjustified.

At the core of Gigaset’s marketing is the GS280’s branding as a “streaming smartphone”. However, we find this designation to be unjustified and questionable. While the GS280 supports QuickCharge 3.0 the included charger does not, which means that charging the phone takes much longer than necessary. In addition, battery life was not as good as we would have expected from a high-capacity battery. The display - advertised as “very bright” - was outshone by most of its competitors, and its high resolution, while commendable, is rendered moot by the lack of DRM Widevine L1 support required to stream FHD content from Netflix, Amazon Prime, and others.